“What is honored will be cultivated.” – Plato

What’s important to me? Will the time I spend this week reflect what’s important to me? What kind of person do I want to be in this world?

This week, I was fortunate to have a friend pass me a link to a video from 60 minutes. For football fans, it is an amazing story about the small island of American Samoa in the South Pacific, it’s community, and amazingly, the number of NFL players this small island has produced.

But, as you’ll see, this story isn’t about football. It’s not just about good genes and it certainly is not about top of the line training programs. It’s about a community of people that honor determination, discipline, and humility. And in their cultivation of this spirit, they accomplish what seems unimaginable to most.

WATCH THIS:  “60 Minutes – American Samoa”

We can’t duplicate another person’s story, experience, gifts or challenges. We have our own story to live. However, what would it mean for my life to cultivate a spirit of determination, discipline, and humility as I work for my goals? Just imagine what kind of communities, teams, organizations, or churches we can build when we cultivate a collective spirit?

The Amor experience for me has always been a community of people rooted in God’s love – determined to cultivate that spirit in the world. When we honor that spirit and bring it to life in the world, the world is changed.

So, what will I honor today?

Travel Gracefully.

- Jason Barger, 11-time Amor leader, speaker, and author of the book, Step Back from the Baggage Claim:  Change the World, Start at the Airport

Our groups often find themselves building for a family on a street where other families live in the same or worse conditions.  Overwhelmed and confused by the specter of poverty, they ask, “How do we pick the families?”  The pastors we work with are members of our Mexican Ministry Planning Board.  They live, work and pastor in the areas where we take our groups to build.  They know their people and the needs of the community.  When we give them a seasonal quota for the number of houses we can build, they bring in the applications for the families based on the greatest needs.  They pick the families as a Board so that we can be assured that we are doing the right thing.  At the same time, we are giving our pastors a meaningful opportunity to reach out to their communities in witness to the love of God.

Last month, one of our groups walked in on an unusual set of circumstances as told by their Amor Field Specialist, T.J. Putman.

“Sometimes our pastors will bump a family to the top of the list because of  extreme hardships such as a devastating fire or health and safety issues.  One week before Christmas, Pastor Ponce, the head of our MMPB, bumped a family to the top of the list.  Francisco, the 39 year old father of five, was in a car accident last April.  He was in and out of the hospital for eight months.  His wife, Silvia, regularly attended church. Francisco did not.  When Silvia called on Pastor Ponce, he started visiting Francisco in the hospital.  They became really close through the whole ordeal.  One wish/dream Francisco shared with Pastor Ponce was, ‘I always wanted to provide a house for my family.’  Pastor Ponce was able to share his association with Amor Ministries and give Francisco the peace of mind that his family would have shelter.

I showed up to build the house the day after Christmas with Abiding Hope Lutheran Church from Littleton, Colorado.  Step by step we learned the family’s situation.  I wasn’t aware of what was going on when we met the family on the first day.  The mother broke down in tears when she shared the story with the group.  I had trouble holding back the tears as I translated.  When the group showed up the doctors had given Francisco seven days to live.  His blood pressure dropped and he would slip in and out of a comma.  The family spent each day of the build at the hospital.  Francisco’s two teenage daughters stayed home to answer our questions about the house and to babysit the two year old daughter.

After three days of strenuous labor we got the house to a point where the family could move in.  We needed one more coat of stucco to finish.  As we were driving off after the third day, I saw Silvia and Francisco’s sixty year old mother, Francisca, walking arm-in-arm like neither of them could stand without the support of the other.  They came up to my truck with tears in her eyes.  She grabbed my arm and said, ‘My son died today.  Silvia is on her way into the house to tell the girls.  They don’t know.’

We drove off and I made some calls. I called Pastor Ponce and told him that the house was at a place where the family could move in and that we could come back the next day and finish it.  He went to visit the family later that night and explained everything.  The family asked Pastor Ponce to pass along this message, ‘This house is a gift from THE Father.  We want to be here with the group tomorrow.’  The group showed up on the last day to finish the house.  After laughing and playing all week nobody really knew how to act or interact with Silvia or her family.  They finished the house in a few hours.  Before the group left they met with the family inside the house to pray and to share the love of God.  Grandma Francisca told us the whole story about what had happened to her son.  She shared how much she will miss him, but she knew he was at peace with God.  He had accepted Christ the day before he died.  She gave each participant the most meaningful hug they had ever experienced.  I am amazed each and every day at how God works and saves lives.”

One of the group members shared how deeply they were affected.  None of them had ever met Francisco, but they all loved him through getting to know his family.  Praying with his family on the last day was an incredibly heartbreaking experience, but one of the beginnings of healing.  Even though the group had been here before on trips that were meaningful and life changing, this one was special.  It proved that God is not random, that He made everything line up so that Francisco could be at peace about his family having a place to live.  It proved how we can all be a part of His perfect plan when we open ourselves to His grace, His invitation to serve someone in need.  It also proves that we can’t always know how much we will impact the life of the family, the local church, or the pastors’ ministries for generations to come when we say yes to a mission trip.  We don’t just build houses.  We build hope.

Peace,

Howie

P.S.  I want to invite all of you to visit our web site at www.amor.org.  There you will find lots of exciting information about the work of Amor Ministries, including our quarterly newsletter, Matters of the Heart.  Learn about our work in the San Carlos Apache Reservation in Arizona, our South Africa mission trips, and our trips to Puerto Peñasco, a small fishing town on the Sea of Cortez, just south of Arizona.  Also learn about our 30^th Anniversary Celebration Tour and many other ways to be involved with us and to support us. Thank you.

One of the many ways we are celebrating 30 years in ministry is the re-creation of the original participant t-shirt. The lucky few who received this shirt came on a trip in 1980. To the best of our knowledge – only one still exists – and it is unwearable (though it looks great framed and on the wall in the Amor office).  So, for those who remember the crazy days of yore, or those who have benefited from this ministry and its mission to serve those in need, or those who just dig cool shirts – this is for you.

As with all of our gear, proceeds for the purchase of “The 1980 Original” benefit Project Hope Please join us as we celebrate 30 years of God’s faithfulness to this ministry! Stay tuned for more ways you can be a part of the festivities.

To get yours, click here.

The X Project is your opportunity to join a movement of individuals who will provide a tangible gift of love to families in Mexico by building a home! It only takes two simple steps:
1. Sign up
2. Show up
The outcome will be an AMAZING experience and AWESOME act of service!

We have done our best to keep the cost for each trip as low as possible. Your trip fees includes: Building materials and tools, meals, local transportation, devotions, camping equipment (for three-day builds only), and an eXperience you’ll never forget!

Make an eXtreme commitment! You will be an answer to prayer for these families who are anxiously awaiting a home. Come to San Diego on any of the dates listed, and let Amor Ministries do the rest!

Additional Trip Details

A 50% deposit per person is due upon registration. Your balance must be paid 21 days before the trip start date.

You will meet at the Amor Ministries headquarters in San Diego, CA at 7:00 a.m the morning of your trip. Participants are asked to bring sleeping bags and proper work clothes. We will provide all other necessary supplies and will facilitate a nightly campfire program.

All minors under 18 MUST be accompanied by an adult. Additionally, Amor Ministries will perform a background check on every participant prior to participating in the project.

Video: Courageous Volunteers Wanted

What: Project Nexus is designed to provide you with a hands-on, get dirty, get involved, ministry experience in a team setting.  You will experience a summer in full-time ministry with all its joys, heartaches, and challenges while learning from the experiences, training, and teaching of our seasoned ministry team.  Each week, you will assist the Amor Team with building projects and programs, and serve the groups as well as the churches and families Amor serves in Mexico.  Time off will be spent on team development, cultural experiences, and much needed rest and relaxation.

Who: YOU…if you are 18-25 years old and looking to serve the Lord for 11 weeks in the Mexican desert.

When: May 23, 2010 – Aug 8, 2010

Where: Tijuana, Mexico

Why: We all know summer jobs can be really lame. What better way to avoid the lull of summer break (and evade carrying golf clubs or making slushies for 12 hours a day) than by serving alongside your brothers and sisters in Christ in Tijuana?

Want more? Visit us at http://www.amor.org/join/internships/nexus

Direct contacts: Erin Lyde – erin@amor.org

By Alyssa Robinson

They were a hard-working church of fellowship, building walls, a roof, and erecting the frame structure of a modest house before 9:00 a.m. on a sunny Saturday morning.  One man entertained himself and the group as he made cat noises while working on the roof, keeping the mood light-hearted and lively.

Who were these workers that, despite the danger painted by the media, showed up to build love and hope through a home?  For the first time in the history of Amor Ministries, a group of men from Tijuana came together to build houses with Amor Ministries.

Amor houses are usually built by Mission Trip participants from the U.S. and Canada. Earlier in the year, however, a group of students had begun building this same home but because of suspected drug activity in the area, Amor decided to reassign the group to a new worksite, leaving the house unfinished.  Instances such as this have occurred for decades in Tijuana, just as they do in every large city.  But because Amor has always valued the safety of its’ participant groups, they moved the young builders out of potential harm’s way.  Many never realize how seamlessly such situations are handled.

And so the projects were brought back to where they started, to the Pastors of the Mexico Ministry Planning Board of Tijuana. When Lydia Lozano, Amor’s Mexico Ministry Coordinator, met with the Tijuana pastors, she explained that the houses could not be finished.  After learning of the many Mission Trip cancellations Amor has faced this year, they offered to build the houses themselves, and providing themselves the perfect opportunity for their own churches to serve.

Undefeated, the pastors immediately gathered groups to start working.  The congregations of Tijuana jumped into action to serve the people of their very own communities.  Inspired by the Mission Trip groups who come to build and provided with the materials and resources supplied by Casa de Amor partners, the local church brought hope.

The men building this home were not looking for spiritual fulfillment nor were they changed by the sight of extreme poverty.  When one man was asked why he came to help, he simply responded, “My pastor asked me to.”  He didn’t second-guess the conditions or over-evaluate the possibility of danger.  He knew he was needed, and he showed up.

Out of the violence that has surrounded Tijuana for years, God has encouraged the local church.  The pastors’ desire is to continue to build in their communities, as well as have their youth work alongside the Amor groups.  Perhaps one day soon, we will see churches on both sides of the border working together to fulfill the Great Commission.

If you have a story about the impact of your Amor Mission Trip, we want to hear more!  Please reply to this post.

On January 10th, 2010, San Diego artists, organizations (like Amor Ministries), and community members will come together for the first ever REVO San Diego event. Hosted at Bondi Bar in downtown, REVO San Diego will be a night to celebrate the creativity of local artists as well as support San Diego-based organizations that are battling social injustices here and around the world.

What: REVO San Diego
When: Sunday, January 10th, 2010@ 7pm
Where: Bondi Bar, Downtown San Diego
333 Fifth Ave
San Diego, CA 92101

More info: www.revosandiego.com

Other Details: $5 suggested donation at door. All ages!

Hi Friends!

Please check out this awesome opportunity to help some amazing organizations (including Amor) simply by voting.

Project 7 is an organization giving out $15,000 to 7 different non profits that are tackling 7 different social justice areas. Amor is a finalist in the “House the Homeless” category and we need to get votes in for our cause. Just go to http://www.project7.com/voting/ and vote. Then tell all of your friends!

My five year-old son, Will, asked me yesterday, “Daddy, how long is it until Christmas?”  A question being asked to parents all around the world at this time of year.

“Two weeks”, I responded.

“But I don’t know how to wait”, he mumbled with the cute/innocent/anxious spirit of a child.

He was right. We often don’t “know how to wait” for Christmas. The season of Advent leading up to Christmas is meant to be a time of expectant waiting (the latin word adventus meaning “coming”). But in our anxiousness and uneasiness with “waiting”, we often fill our time dashing from place to place, checking off our ‘to do lists‘, and sprinting toward December 25th. Our style of “waiting” delivers panting breaths rather than peaceful stillness.

So, the challenge continues again this year – To set intentional moments between now and Christmas to slow down, embrace time with family and friends, give unconditionally, remember those in need, and reflect on our lives through a lens of gratitude. It’s in those intentional moments that our “waiting” dissolves and the true spirit of Christmas arrives.

Let the waiting continue…

“Blessed is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my doors,

waiting at my doorway.” – Proverbs 8:34

Jason Barger, 11-time Amor leader and author of the book, Step Back from the Baggage Claim: Change the World, Start at the Airport

Have I Done Enough?

Over Thanksgiving weekend I got a text from our Chief Operations Officer, Wendy Johnson, that she had just seen the movie, Blindside and the Sandra Bullock character reminded her of me. Yea, I can see that, well except for the hot body and millionaire husband, that could be me. Michael Oher, the homeless youth taken in by the Touhy family, was interviewed on CNN and the anchor finished the interview with how wonderful it would be if the movie inspired others to reach out and take someone in.

Last Saturday I was in Tijuana attending the Ministry Planning Board Christmas party at Pastor Armando Ponce’s church. He has been with us almost from the beginning when his church and home were housed in a facility that resembled an aluminum Quonset hut. A lot has changed since then but what is the most inspiring is that Pastor Armando has planted 10 mission churches in the city of Tijuana.

Tonight Scott and I went to see the new Clint Eastwood movie Invictus. I’ve been thinking about that prison cell where Nelson Mandela lived for so many years and how this one man helped change the course of history in South Africa that makes it now possible for us to serve there. A great and inspiring figure in our lifetime.

These two movies and the testimony of Pastor Armando inspire me to do more. And so this holiday season I am asking myself, “Have I done enough?” I am 55 years old and I know that if I died today I could go to my grave feeling good about the fact that I made a promise as a 9 year old to be a missionary and I kept it. Honestly, since I made that commitment at Guadalupe Christian Service Camp people would say I have accomplished a great deal. And yet until the day I die I will keep asking myself, “Have I done enough?”

Have you done enough?

By Gayla Congdon, Founder and CSO of Amor Ministries

Read more by Gayla by clicking here.